Chapter 15: The Forbidden Forest
| Simplified Chinese (Mandarin: China) | ||
| 禁林 Jìnlín |
禁
jìn = 'prohibited, forbidden'. 林 lín = 'forest'. |
The Prohibited Forest |
| Traditional Chinese (Mandarin: Taiwan) | ||
| 禁忌的森林 Jìnjì de sēnlín |
禁忌 jìnjì = 'taboo'. 的 de = connecting particle 森林 sēnlín = 'forest'. |
The Taboo Forest |
| Japanese | ||
| 禁じられた森 Kinjirareta mori |
禁じる kinjiru = 'prohibit, forbid' (Verb + Passive られ -rare- + Past た -ta = 禁じられた kinjirareta 'was forbidden, has been forbidden'). 森 mori = 'forest'. |
The Prohibited Forest |
| Korean | ||
| 금지된 숲 Geumjidoen sup |
금지(禁止)하다 geumji-hada = 'prohibit, forbid'. (Verb + Passive/causative 되 -doe- + Past attributive -ㄴ -n = 금지된 geumjidoen 'was forbidden, has been forbidden'). 숲 sup = 'forest'. |
The Prohibited Forest |
| Vietnamese (Chinese characters show etymology) | ||
| Khu rừng cấm | khu
(區) = 'zone'. rừng = 'forest'. cấm (禁) = 'prohibit, forbid'. |
The Prohibited Forest Zone |
| Mongolian (previous) | ||
| Дархан цаазат ой Darkhan tsaazat oi |
дархан цааз darkhan tsaaz = 'strict protection'. (дархан цааз darkhan tsaaz = 'sacred, protected' + -т -t = 'having.') ой oi = 'forest'. |
The Strictly Protected Forest |
| Mongolian (new) | ||
| Хориотой ой Khoriotoi oi |
хориотой khoriotoi = 'forbidden, prohibited'. (хорио khorio = 'prohibition, ban' + -той -toi = 'having.') ой oi = 'forest'. |
The Prohibited forest |
The Forbidden Forest is an ancient forest that is home to many dangerous creatures. It is off limits to students, hence its name.
The English name is two words: 'Forbidden' (past partiple of 'forbid') + 'forest'. The sense is that of a 'forest that is forbidden. The verb 'forbid' in English is slightly old-fashioned and potentially carries tones of religious or moral prohibition. The more modern term used for legal prohibition is 'prohibited'.
Forbidden Forest
There are different approaches to translating 'Forbidden Forest'.
- Two translations use the Past Passive form of the verb 'to forbid', which then modifies the noun 'forest'. The meaning is 'forest which has been forbidden', very close to how the English is expressed.
- Both the Japanese and Korean translations use this construction, which is possible because both (1) allow the verb to be directly marked for passive voice (or passive/causative) and past tense (禁じられた kinjirareta, 금지된 geumjidoen 'was prohibited, has been prohibited') and (2) allow this verb form to directly modify the noun, like a relative clause in English.
- Both the Japanese and Korean translations use this construction, which is possible because both (1) allow the verb to be directly marked for passive voice (or passive/causative) and past tense (禁じられた kinjirareta, 금지된 geumjidoen 'was prohibited, has been prohibited') and (2) allow this verb form to directly modify the noun, like a relative clause in English.
- Although this would also be possible in Mongolian, the two translations utilise a feature specific to Mongolian: the suffix -тай -tai / -тэй -tei / -той -toi, also abbreviated to -т -t, meaning 'with' or 'having'. This form directly modifies the following noun.
- The previous Mongolian translation used дархан цаазат darkhan tsaazat 'sacred, taboo, reserved' (дархан цаазтай darkhan tsaaztai is also possible), from дархан цааз darkhan tsaaz 'taboo, prohibition'.
- The newer Mongolian translation uses instead хориотой khoriotoi 'forbidden, prohibited', from хорио khorio 'prohibition, ban'.
- The previous Mongolian translation used дархан цаазат darkhan tsaazat 'sacred, taboo, reserved' (дархан цаазтай darkhan tsaaztai is also possible), from дархан цааз darkhan tsaaz 'taboo, prohibition'.
- One translation uses an adjective-noun construction.
- The Chinese translation from Taiwan uses two separate words, the adjective 禁忌
jìnjì 'taboo' and the noun 森林 sēnlín 'forest', joined by the connecting particle 的 de, which is compulsory for adjectives or modifiers longer than one syllable.
- The Chinese translation from Taiwan uses two separate words, the adjective 禁忌
jìnjì 'taboo' and the noun 森林 sēnlín 'forest', joined by the connecting particle 的 de, which is compulsory for adjectives or modifiers longer than one syllable.
- Two translations create a tightly integrated unit.
- The Mainland Chinese translation creates a single two character word, 禁林 jìnlín, composed of 禁
jìn 'prohibit, forbid, prohibited, forbidden' (having verbal force) + 林 lín 'forest' (a noun).
Neither 禁 jìn nor 林 lín customarily occur as independent words standing on their own. A similar compound in Chinese is 禁书 jìnshū 'prohibited book'.
- The Vietnamese translation is similar but looser, using the verb cấm 'forbid, prohibit, place out of bounds' and combining it with khu rừng 'forest zone'. The alternative form rừng cấm 'preserved forest, forest out of bounds' also exists.
Note that the word order here is native Vietnamese: cấm follows the noun it modifies. Vietnamese also has Chinese-style compounds in which cấm precedes the noun, e.g., cấm thư 禁書 'prohibited book'.
- The Mainland Chinese translation creates a single two character word, 禁林 jìnlín, composed of 禁
jìn 'prohibit, forbid, prohibited, forbidden' (having verbal force) + 林 lín 'forest' (a noun).
Neither 禁 jìn nor 林 lín customarily occur as independent words standing on their own. A similar compound in Chinese is 禁书 jìnshū 'prohibited book'.
How is 'forbidden' translated?
The form 禁 meaning 'forbid, prohibit', is found in the four CJKV languages (Chinese jìn, Japanese kin, Korean geum, and Vietnamese cấm). It has a verbal or adjectival meaning and tends to be associated with bureaucratic prohibitions.
禁忌 jìnjì 'taboo', as found in the Taiwanese translation, also carries overtones of religious or superstitious avoidances.
The Mongolian terms owe nothing to Chinese. They carry implications of prohibition by higher authorities and, in one of the translations, religious or natural prohibitions.
- Хорио khorio refers to a prohibition or ban.
- Дархан цаазат darkhan tsaazat is commonly applied to preserves that are protected from hunting or other activities. Дархан darkhan refers to sacred or protected areas; цааз tsaaz refers to legal prohibition or (traditionally) putting to death. The Darkhid are a clan of Mongol warriors originally charged with protecting Genghis Khan's mausoleum and a sacred area in northern Mongolia believed to be his possible resting place.
How is 'forest' translated?
Words for forest in all languages use native rather than imported vocabulary. Both Japanese and Korean have the word 森林 sēnlín / samlim, made up of etymologically Chinese elements, which tend to be more formal or scientific in nature. However, both translators choose more familiar, perhaps more 'primitive', native terms, as befits the nature of the Forbidden Forest.
(Korean appears thanks to "Hiro".)
(Detailed notes on the chapter can be found at Harry Potter Lexicon)
| ⇚ Chapter 14 |  |